Monday, January 1, 2018

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

My friends, to usher out old, gloomy, discouraging 2017 and welcome a year which we hope will bring better times, our staff decided to gather together a posey of New Year's poems for you, to wish you health, happiness and a brand new year of poetry. We hope your holidays were wonderful, filled with family joy, and we look forward to another year of sharing poems with you.







Optimism

I am thankful and filled with joy
one year ends another begins.

Thus has it been since time began
so will it be until time's end.

I ring out the old and in the new
celebrate rebirth of my soul

along with beginning of new year.
I set aside my past mistakes

January brings a fresh slate.
New year, I will welcome you.

Sherry: Thank you, Mary, for starting us off on such a positive note. And for your years of dedicated service to the poets of Poets United. 






Another January First: a sestina

Another January first, keep them coming:
I awoke early from my spiritual retreat
walking slowly toward breakfast after the bell,
past crumpled dark luminaries and frost ready
to melt, and I was in step with other seniors
some speaking, some silent with worshipful intent.

We woke early at our religious retreat
after a feast night with music, ringing the bells—
senior citizens waiting to hear God, ready
for earth's midnight.  We've gathered together, senior
moments on hold, radios turned off, so intent
on this December thirty first. Keep them coming.

We walked slowly toward breakfast after the bell
hoping to find even breakfast changed and ready
for anything but the same cereals seniors
eat daily.  But, I asked comrades, what if—intent
as we are on change—we miss the joy of coming
to familiar comforts with no need to retreat?

We look around, we dark luminaries, ready
to glow as suns in training, stars of the senior
class, ready to graduate, to commence, intent
on lighting the wicks of insight!  Keep them coming.
Today is not just a day—today ends retreat.
Finally this morning we know, so, ring the bell.

Let no one say we are over-the-hill seniors
depressed by cereal and eggs.  We are intent
on being heard in congress and we are coming
in droves to plant ourselves on the paths.  Since retreat,
we grow strong, bold again with a liberty bell
in our voices, soul riding on backbones, ready.

New Year’s Eve and day worship renew our intent
to move as God leads us and so we are coming
to walk on the wild side after this brief retreat.
We're full of enthusiasm this morning. Bells,
we eat granola and go to meeting ready
to leave retirement, graduating seniors.

January first's coming again.  No retreat.
Listen to the bells peal and send us out, ready
to love as only seniors can, with great intent. 

Sherry: This poem inspires me to do just that, "to love as only seniors can, with great intent." I can feel the strength and resolve, the activism, in "we are coming to walk on the wild side." I love this poem, Susan.







January Moments

In my dark garden
wind chimes clang faintly, I breathe
the smell of the sea.

Steamy nights
on this tree-thick hill;
my grey cat
sits silent
on the top step, keeping guard
while we toss in heat.

Like my cats
the plants are very still
this hot morning.

The heat revs up
as the morning brightens.
What time today
will humid rains kick in?
Summer at full throttle.

Downpour.
At last a bud
on the rosebush.

Quiet –
the rain pauses
waiting.


Trying to come up with a poem for the new year, and uninspired, I looked through several years of micropoetry written in January, selected one from each year (with a bit of tweaking to some, on seeing them anew) and found that they could be read as a sequence. 

Sherry: And they made a beautiful poem, Rosemary. Thank you.






A New Year Candy Song

I’ll candy crush my heart
to sweeten you all
in this gloomy world-
I’ll chocolate bomb the hearts
of the bitter monsters
of this nightly world-
I’ll blossom blast those tongue
that lives on harangue
brewing out of this shadowy world-
with my striped-candy dream
and wrapped-candy breath
I’ll sugar crush-
soda crush-
jelly crush-
flower crush-
this fiendish world…..
                    

My note: I do not wish to grieve to death in the first month of the year as it’s a hell of a month for me. January will always be an abyss of sorrow to me. And I couldn’t also avoid the darkness that this world is passing through at present, courtesy of our politicos. So I decided to make a sweet explosion with my words. 

This poem might be the result of my being a candy crush saga game addict :) Hope this new year finds you in much happiness and lots of amazing words.  

Sherry: We will walk with you through January, Sumana. Every step of the way. Thank you for the sweet wishes in this poem.






HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As the old bedraggled,
disappointing year skulks away,
may you approach the new,
shining with possibility,
your eyes wide with wonder
like a Christmas child.

May you open the package 
of each day,
gift-wrapped in sunrise colours,
to find something in it
of beauty, of laughter, of affection,
of gratitude, of Hope.

May the old year sing out the tears,
the   disillusion, the events
that broke our hearts,
and show us a new day,
tinged golden with the promise
of better times ahead.
May 2018 unravel its weeks and months
full of community, of working together
in the cause of social justice, 
and of healing and restoring
this suffering planet.

We wish you hearts filled
with possibility and promise.
We wish you times at home
with loved ones close by,
faces shining in the firelight.
We wish you flights of poetry
to make your heart soar,
and dogs with thumping tails
inside your front door
to greet you as you enter.

Most of all,
as the new year dawns
and we bid farewell
to the darkness of 2017,
we wish you happy hearts.
We wish you Love.






Thank you, Mary, Rosemary, Susan and Sumana for starting us off on a happy note. We hope all of you enjoyed this posey of poems. Do come back and see who we talk to next. A hint: it is a long-time member of Poets United, and you will enjoy catching up with her.

14 comments:

  1. Sherry - what a wonderful feature you prepared for New Year's Day. I am awed by the poetry my fellow Poets United friends shared. I am honored to be 'working' alongside you. Ha, Sumana, I didn't realize you were SO into Candy Crush!! I too wish we could crush so much in this fiendish world.

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  2. I'm happy you like it, my friend. We do try to stay hopeful, though the morning's news is ominous. I hope EVERYTHING political changes in 2018, and not just in the US. Onward, with brave hearts, my friends.

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  3. Many thanks, Sherry, for putting together this delightful feature and arranging the poems so beautifully to culminate in your own strong, loving message. I am so glad to be included among these lovely pieces, and on this wonderful team.

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  4. You are welcome, Rosemary. I love yours, so rich with the peacefulness of living. Thankfully, within our four walls, we can retreat from the fray.

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  5. I am in AWE! And I see the rest of you have a little of that too. How different we are! And how you inspire me with rebirth and buds and chocolate bombs and sunrise colors! My poem was from a few years back, but I actually wrote a little snippet this New Year's Eve, but not in time for the Pantry, and it is here: http://susanspoetry.blogspot.com/2017/12/new-years-eve-2018.html
    Happy New Year! (Sherry, you are magic glue, bringing so much together, or maybe just magic.)

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  6. You poets bring me the ingredients. I just stir the pot. I love your new new year's poem, and almost asked if i could fit it in this feature, but as it was 12:25, i thought that might be pushing it, lol.

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  7. The feature is so delightful Sherry & truly feeling this new year to be the "bud on the rosebush". May we all use this "fresh slate" meaningfully and honor our gift "package of each day" and be ready to love all "with great intent".

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  8. What s wonderful way to start the year

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  9. This is such a rich and beautiful post. I'm so grateful to you, the 'staff' of Poets United. You are an inspiration to give, to share, to love. Your poems warm my heart and fill it not just with love but determination to do what matters.
    I wish you a happy, fruitful, year of material and spiritual abundance.

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  10. So happy this feature has inspired positive and hopeful feelings, my friends. We need to armor ourselves with faith and hope these days.

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  11. Oh these were a delight....I am so glad you shared them Sherry! A boost as we start this year off right!

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  12. What wonderful words of hope young ladies! What wonderful words to welcome this new year Thank you! And thank you for all you do to make this wonderful place possible.
    And my thoughts are with you Sumana and I send you big hugs.
    With love from a fellow ancient one.
    Anna :o]

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    Replies
    1. So wonderful to have you all as dear friends Anna. Thank you so much.

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  13. Thank you for visiting, for staying for a while and joining the conversation. I'll definitely be here for the power of poetry.

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